# Question re: Prince Caspian movie **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 15, 2008, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266 "2008-12-15T18:11:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![batsto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b2d939/32.png) [@batsto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/batsto)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/1 "2008-12-15T18:11:12Z")
I watched the Prince Caspian film the other night, and I think I missed something. Why, exactly, didn’t Aslan help them out earlier? When he was asked he just said “because nothing happens the same way twice” or something like that. Shouldn’t the follow up question have been, “no, really? Why haven’t you helped us?” Did I miss something? Or does the book explain this better? Once they found the lion, he suddenly was able to help them? Or did I miss part of the movie (not impossible since I watched it with two kids who talk a lot during movies , causing me to sometimes miss important plot points) ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/2 "2008-12-15T18:12:43Z")
I’m guessing he couldn’t help them until they believed in him enough. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/3 "2008-12-15T18:27:13Z")
C. S. Lewis was a devout christian and in the Narnia books Aslan represents Jesus. The idea is that you have to have strong faith in Christ and then you will be stronger. It does seem an odd concept to me, not to mention narratively unsatisfactory, but I guess Christians do find it compelling. Fairly well made movie, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/4 "2008-12-15T18:31:07Z")
Because Aslan helps those that help themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/5 "2008-12-15T18:36:12Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Because Aslan helps those that help themselves. So he helps those who don’t need help? ---
**Author:** ![batsto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b2d939/32.png) [@batsto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/batsto)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/6 "2008-12-15T18:44:24Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > So he helps those who don’t need help? I always wondered about that as well–if I could help myself, I wouldn’t need you to help me out. Either way, I liked the movie except for that one part. I couldn’t understand why the other characters just accepted that answer. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/7 "2008-12-15T20:07:52Z")
> [@batsto](#): > > I always wondered about that as well–if I could help myself, I wouldn’t need you to help me out. Either way, I liked the movie except for that one part. I couldn’t understand why the other characters just accepted that answer. If you needed a hole dug, then Jesus isn’t going to jump in and help you until you actually start digging the hole yourself. That is the concept. Aslan wasn’t going to help them win a war until they actually started fighting for themselves. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/8 "2008-12-15T20:30:01Z")
The book goes differently. Aslan actually shows up earlier (sort of, the book focuses a lot on what happened before the Pevensies showed up). He helps out primarily in the form of advice, but he does show up with the dyads and so forth, and a lot faster than in the book (there was no massive battle scene, just a couple skirmishes). Additionally, the Telmarines realized they were outmatched almost immediately after Aslan arrives, and surrender. And later about half the Telmarines go back to their world (well, our world, but a different time). ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/9 "2008-12-15T21:37:55Z")
I haven’t seen the movie since it came out (and the book is different) but I think some of you have it backwards. The point wasn’t that Aslan wanted them to try for themselves before he showed up. The point was that Peter and Caspian got impatient waiting for Aslan to show up, and made their own plans and tried to defeat the Telmarines without him. Because they did not wait for Aslan, this plan was doomed to fail and actually made things worse. Once Aslan arrived - in his own good time - they were able to defeat the Telmarines. Why did Aslan tarry? Who knows. He’s not a _tame_ lion. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/10 "2008-12-15T21:41:09Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Why did Aslan tarry? Who knows. He’s not a _tame_ lion. He might have been busy doing voiceovers for Fallout 3. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2008, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-re-prince-caspian-movie/477266/11 "2008-12-15T21:48:42Z")
Why does God let bad things happen to good people? Same reason. I don’t know what it is but C.S. Lewis thinks he does.